Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council spokesman Andriy Lysenko says Ukrainian troops observe the ceasefire, but in case of threat to their lives they will open retaliatory fire

KIEV, September 08. /ITAR-TASS/. An Ukrainian Security and Defense Council official admitted that new troops and equipment arrived to the zone of the military operation, while a ceasefire was declared.

“Ukraine has enough forces to repulse enemy attacks. Forces and equipment that arrive to the zone of combat operations are being prepared,” the National Security and Defense Council’s spokesman Andriy Lysenko said.

Ukrainian troops observe the ceasefire, but in case of threat to their lives they will open retaliatory fire, he said. Troops remain at deployment places where they were before last Friday, before the ceasefire agreement was signed, he said.

No movement of combat vehicles across the Ukrainian-Russian border was reported over the past 24 hours, he added.

Earlier, Vice-Premier of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic Andrei Purgin said in an interview to ITAR-TASS that Ukraine’s armed forces during the lull actively rotated and brought new troops and weapons to their deployment places.

“Ukraine is actively rotating troops, bringing new troops in. There is various movement of vehicles. They have new armored personnel carriers. They are doing what was impossible without truce conditions. All the movements of convoys would have been impossible. During the truce, convoys of combat vehicles reach destinations and prepare for attacks,” he said.

The agreement on a peace plan and a ceasefire was reached during a meeting of the Contact Group in Minsk on September 5. Leaders of the Donetsk and Luhansk republics repeatedly said they would observe the ceasefire.